IAF Yanshuf landing onboard HMS Ocean

A helicopter landing test has been carried out onboard the Royal Navy’s HMS Ocean by an Israel Air Force (IAF) UH-60 Yanshuf helicopter during the vessel’s visit to Israel in December, the IAF announced on 3 January.

The test was performed by the IAF Flight Test Squadron in order to develop the helicopter's carrier-landing capabilities.

The landing, performed 21 miles from Israel's shoreline, began with a preliminary tour of the carrier in which the IAF test crew underwent a thorough briefing and then examined the deck to study the landing point and the relevant markings. Later, with an IAF test pilot in the cockpit, a demonstration landing was performed using a British AW101 Merlin helicopter.

Commander of the Rolling Sword squadron from Palmahim AFB said: ‘This is the first time a Yanshuf helicopter has landed on a helicopter carrier. A landing of this sort includes all sorts of challenges. When an aircraft lands on a warship, it is influenced by electromagnetic interference as well as winds and turbulence.

‘The test is important to the development of Yanshuf capabilities. We tested landing from a low-altitude, landing in proximity to other helicopters and communication with the warship's personnel. Many of the markings on deck could have been wrongly interpreted, but the preliminary tour prevented that.’